Frustrated and Confused On caloric intake
FitCowgirl8
Posts: 175 Member
When I joined MFP my goal was set at 1200 calories per day. I have been sticking pretty closely to that every day and exercising to burn at least an additional 300 cals each day. I know I need to up my exercise even more but so far I haven't really been losing much weight and I keep reading how people are saying that 1200 calories is too low. I started going on to other online calorie calculators to see if I could find out if I need to be eating more calories to lose weight the problem is every one I look at is saying something different. I have been given calorie ranges from 900-2010 calories per day. How do I figure out what is right for me to lose weight? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
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it is confusing. if you figure it out, let me know. I hear both eat more and eat less. I am not sure what is right!!!0
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When I joined MFP my goal was set at 1200 calories per day. I have been sticking pretty closely to that every day and exercising to burn at least an additional 300 cals each day. I know I need to up my exercise even more but so far I haven't really been losing much weight and I keep reading how people are saying that 1200 calories is too low. I started going on to other online calorie calculators to see if I could find out if I need to be eating more calories to lose weight the problem is every one I look at is saying something different. I have been given calorie ranges from 900-2010 calories per day. How do I figure out what is right for me to lose weight? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
When you say you stay close to 1200 do you mean 1200 Gross or 1200 net? There is a big difference. You need to hit your 1200 net minimum a day.0 -
This is my pet peeve.......conflicting advice from all the "professionals". The key is figuring out what works best for your body. It's a difficult thing to do and one that I still haven't mastered. The 1200 calories is a general rule, but doesn't work for everybody.
I've been frustrated too, so at least I know I'm not alone. :ohwell:0 -
I think anything between 1200 to 1600 is a good number, it's working for me. 2010 is what your body is probably burning a day just to live so anything less than that should result in a weight loss.0
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Checked out your diary and my suggestions are:
1) Log on the weekends- even when you eat out, do "poorly", have junky food and don't want to know - these are the most important times to log.
2) Try to eat TO YOUR GOAL. Eat to 1200 or 1300 calories (pick one and stick to it). If you exercise and MFP gives you more calories to eat, eat them. Try to be within 50 calories +/- at the end of the day.
3) Watch your sodium- Try to make all 1200 or 1300 calories you consume as healthy as possible as often as possible. It will aid in regular, measurable loss.
4) Don't worry about getting in more exercise, focus on getting control for all 7 days a week. This doesn't mean being perfect all 7 days a week, but it does mean being aware when you go over, planning when you will go over, and coming to a middle ground with food splurges.
5) Reign in your loss expectations. 1-2lbs a week max. I would advise to expect .5-1lb so that if you get to 1 lb or more, it's a pleasant surprise and you can be happy with anything smaller. Patience!
Anywho, those are my thoughts. Good luck!0 -
I also had the 1200 and found that I could graze all day and avoided eating "meals". Result is that I lost 25 and very seldom was hungry. Make sure you use the calories wisely...protein, veggies and fruits with an occassionaly treat of a cocktail or sweet. I seldom eat a meal except when I go out. I have found that eating healthy throughout the day is a much better way for me to maintain and when I know I am going out I plan for it.
I think my horse also appreciates it and feel my blance is better.0 -
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/512956-tdee-what-is-it-and-why-you-should-not-eat-below-your-bmr
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
I don't know if you've seen these articles floating around, but there is a lot of good information, both in the OP and the ensuing replies. Hope this helps!0 -
When I joined MFP my goal was set at 1200 calories per day. I have been sticking pretty closely to that every day and exercising to burn at least an additional 300 cals each day. I know I need to up my exercise even more but so far I haven't really been losing much weight and I keep reading how people are saying that 1200 calories is too low. I started going on to other online calorie calculators to see if I could find out if I need to be eating more calories to lose weight the problem is every one I look at is saying something different. I have been given calorie ranges from 900-2010 calories per day. How do I figure out what is right for me to lose weight? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
This is a great thread for figuring it out. It helped me quite a bit when I first started.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12?hl=middle+of+the+map0 -
Checked out your diary and my suggestions are:
1) Log on the weekends- even when you eat out, do "poorly", have junky food and don't want to know - these are the most important times to log.
2) Try to eat TO YOUR GOAL. Eat to 1200 or 1300 calories (pick one and stick to it). If you exercise and MFP gives you more calories to eat, eat them. Try to be within 50 calories +/- at the end of the day.
3) Watch your sodium- Try to make all 1200 or 1300 calories you consume as healthy as possible as often as possible. It will aid in regular, measurable loss.
4) Don't worry about getting in more exercise, focus on getting control for all 7 days a week. This doesn't mean being perfect all 7 days a week, but it does mean being aware when you go over, planning when you will go over, and coming to a middle ground with food splurges.
5) Reign in your loss expectations. 1-2lbs a week max. I would advise to expect .5-1lb so that if you get to 1 lb or more, it's a pleasant surprise and you can be happy with anything smaller. Patience!
Anywho, those are my thoughts. Good luck!
i agree with all of this, and eat your exercise calories!
also, you dont have to burn thousands of calories each time you work out - my usual burn is 200-300 5 times per week which i am more than happy with and am getting my desired results with. its quality not quantity!0 -
Ok, First of all hi, My name is kayla and I am currently in school for this. I have taken 9 courses already to even do the job I do and let me give you some info.
On the program I teach at work which is a management program (not a quick fad "diet", we call it a lifestyle change) we only stay on 1200 calories for 7 days. The reason why is your body's metabolism (the rate in which you burn calories at any given point in the day) slows down. It is slowing down to help your body support itself without much food in it. What we do after a week is we bump everyone to 1500 calories. It allows a restriction but yet lets your metabolism speed back up due to the new food intake. I suggest, based on my knowledge, that you bump to 1400-1500 calories. This is what I have done and I am 85 pounds down.0 -
I am not a proponent of "eating back your exercise calories" because it's counter productive. I realize a lot of people out there have issues with this but that is my feeling. You need to eat at a calorie deficit period.
If you're looking to lose 1 lb a week you need to consume 500 calories less per week. That means you either:
1. Eat 500 calories less per day
2. Burn 500 calories more
3. A combination of the two
You could just be at a plateau which is why you're not losing. Play with the numbers for a little while and see where that takes you. Also are you being truly honest in your diary? Like someone here mentioned you need to log your weekends and even if you have a "bad" eating day you need to log those calories because you consumed them and they will impact your weight loss. Also remember that liquid calories (ie alcohol) count as well and those add up quick.0 -
When I joined MFP my goal was set at 1200 calories per day. I have been sticking pretty closely to that every day and exercising to burn at least an additional 300 cals each day. I know I need to up my exercise even more but so far I haven't really been losing much weight and I keep reading how people are saying that 1200 calories is too low. I started going on to other online calorie calculators to see if I could find out if I need to be eating more calories to lose weight the problem is every one I look at is saying something different. I have been given calorie ranges from 900-2010 calories per day. How do I figure out what is right for me to lose weight? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
When you say you stay close to 1200 do you mean 1200 Gross or 1200 net? There is a big difference. You need to hit your 1200 net minimum a day.
I try to stay at 1200 Gross. I don't eat back exercise calories most days as there are conflicting views on that as well0 -
Have you considered that you may be building muscle. Because the same volume of muscle weighs more than the same volume of fat, if you lose fat but gain muscle the scale will not move as much as it would if you were not gaining muscle. You are still losing in such a case, though.
Personally, I eat at least 1200 calories a day. When I burn calories I eat only those I need to help with hunger. When I exercise, my hunger increases so I go over 1200 but I don't necessarily eat all of the earned calories. I am just starting out this time, but have successfully lost weight in the past using this method.
I recommend you select one suggestion and try it. If it doesn't work for you, choose another. You need to find out what works for you. As far as the 1200 calories being too little, I think it depends upon how much you weigh. If the program says 1200 a day and you told it you wanted to lose 1 pound a week, I do not believe it is too little. I have lost plenty in the past following a 1200 calorie a day diet. The problem was when I reached my goal, I eventually stopped counting...0 -
When you say you stay close to 1200 do you mean 1200 Gross or 1200 net? There is a big difference. You need to hit your 1200 net minimum a day.
I am not convinced this is true. The program only issues a warning if you eat less than a total of 1200 gross not net.0 -
Thank you all for the suggestions. I need to be better about logging on the weekends. I have checked out some of the web links and I got BMR values of 1556 and 1550. But then those sites also said I should be eating 1867 and 1705 calories a day respectively. Why would I be eating over my BMR to lose weight? A little extra information to help out
Height 5' 3"
Starting Weight 170 (June 2012)
Current weight 162
BMI 28.3
TDEE (per website) 21310 -
Eat 1600, a deficit of about 500 cals/day or 2 - 4 lbs/month loss.TDEE (per website) 21310 -
I think anything between 1200 to 1600 is a good number, it's working for me. 2010 is what your body is probably burning a day just to live so anything less than that should result in a weight loss.
eh... 2010 is more likely closer to your TDEE....0 -
When you say you stay close to 1200 do you mean 1200 Gross or 1200 net? There is a big difference. You need to hit your 1200 net minimum a day.
I am not convinced this is true. The program only issues a warning if you eat less than a total of 1200 gross not net.
not totally convinced either...0 -
It's not always how much you eat, rather than what you eat. I have cut down a LOT on grain products (pretty much everything but fruits, veggies & meat) and it has been helping. I still stay w/in the 1200 calories except for the days I go to the gym then I eat more accordingly. It has really helped. While I can't seem to give up grains all together due to their convenience factor, I feel better in general when I eat less of them. Hope that helps
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Thank you all for the suggestions. I need to be better about logging on the weekends. I have checked out some of the web links and I got BMR values of 1556 and 1550. But then those sites also said I should be eating 1867 and 1705 calories a day respectively. Why would I be eating over my BMR to lose weight? A little extra information to help out
Height 5' 3"
Starting Weight 170 (June 2012)
Current weight 162
BMI 28.3
TDEE (per website) 2131
Did you bother to read the In Place of a Road Map link above, or did you just skip over it. Eating anything under your TDEE will result in weight loss long term. BMR is simply the amount of calories needed to keep your body alive with no movement or activity at all, ie heart beating, lungs breathing, brain functioning and the like. The moment you move you are burning more calories than your BMR. If you are a complete couch potato you would be sedentary which is 1.2 times your BMR. Most people are at least lightly active even if they have a sedentary job as true sedentary would be sitting all day are work and sitting the rest of the time watching TV or playing video games. I suggest you use the advice of In Place of a Road Map.0
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